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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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THE EXECUTIVE'S DEFENCE ; ISO , Holbcrn , Saturday . * Beotheb . Democrats , —We regret indeed that vre are under the necessity of defending ourselves and osrsbren : colleague from the grave charges of fraud , swindling , and embezzlement , for which , were -pre in other employ , we might be transported . Sueb are " a few of the charges preferred against na by-ihe Rev . Wm . HU , as we are told in his article of "Satordav last , t&st there is more in store ftr ns ; for ¦ wha t " b . t has i : readj gi ^ en is only a sample of the sack . 2 > esi week we shall , perhaps , hare the re-E ^ Tider , and , if we mistake no ; , we shall be quite prepared to meet item . ¦ . . Hill 5 the
This Kacner cf Mr . treafcng . friends of the people in the cause ujastice ; this mild and gentlema . x ; lv criiJci-iE . as he is pleasedio call such productions , such as cefrsnders , swindler- , and " emfcezzl js , moral and political dishonesty , has been called forth , or he pretends it has , through-the unsatisfactory explanation that Mr . CampbeD has eiren a- to " lie expenditure of the ftuids of . -the ^ i 5 oc : ation . The expiration then giren of the expenditure of a portion oi the fcads such a = kbs under the head of postage a&d stationery , is all the explanation -we are eBabiec to give , excepting ilr . HiJl will aiiow ES a space in tne Star for every separate item of pens , ii . k , pipers , sealing wax , wafers ,, postage , cares , and ieiters , and , in fact , many o ; htr imali CLatiirs thit are continually wanted .
Sir- Hili caiied on the country to examine the ftfWUUts of the Ex-ldltive , having Sr .-t thrown tee atmosphere of suspicion around ns himself "" by his oira censure . Djd : be country respond io . it ? - We believe not ; at all eren-j , we ki ^ ow of Eonem-jaiug snythiiig of the Eon public , excepting ' * e deltgate meeting a ' - the Old Bailey ; and we W » e been -informer the number of delegat-es were . rvcry few . Bat this is cothing new , for Mr . Hiil is only at his old plax of denunciation ; the motives which prompt sneh a reckless and uiULaniy an interference with the characters of men are bttt . known to himself ; but w ^ aievtr be the monve , we cannot shut oar eves to the mischief it produces in our raiiks .
As t-o our secretary we will leave the corn , try to judge of his Ffrrices , and ssk them at the ? ame lime whether it would be possible that any wcrkingman could find time , as our secretary has often eone . t-o ¦ RTiie Si : y or sixty letters in one day , and sometimes as msiij lo read , besides BiimberiKg Q . pO' Jot 3 , 100 cards in a week , running backwards and forwards 10 the post tfije with orders and Jeiters , and to the coa ; h and railway cSces ¦ frith cards and parcels , with XE ^ ch cxher incidrntal labour , which bone but those who perform could understand the burden of ; indeed so heavy has the business been on his -hands that he has oiien been obliged to engage an assistant at his own expense . How , then , we ask , is it passible that Eucn services could be performed withont the parties performing xhem befcg remunerated for their labour ! We presume ; hat . Mr . Hii ] himself , although he might be attending a shop in London or MsflcbesPeTj woulJ no ; do it withoni bein ^ remunerate . ! .
But think not , brother Chartists , that Mr . Hill , in . tramping nn his psltry , yet very " respectable , charges of rwindling , defrauding and embezzling tiie society , the poor weaver ' s pence , has-no other o ' oieci in view than ih&i of guardiDg tie society against such pra-Kiees . No , do ; there is ; e : her and hi ^ ater game in view—there are other men to be bunted do ^ m . Mr . Hiil screens himself behind , this very plausible appearance , that he may take a more deadly a : m a : the rictics he has selected .. It wonld have been more honourable oa the part of Mr . Hill had he openly and manfully avowed his object , and at once openly attacked the parties for whom his thrust is intended , than , coicard-liki , take the deadly aim ihrcngh the person of our Secretarv .
The conduct now pursued by Mr . Hill towards the Exccatire , brings ns back , in sorrowful reflection , to similar conduct pursued towards Mr . Ph . lp ; that gent !? man having recommended the Charlies te elect men ? o the Birmingham ConfsreDce , ' th-3-Tery thint ; Mr . Hili is now doing himself , brought himself under the displeasure of Mr . Hill . >" ow , mars , brother Chartists , previous to that time , every act of the Executive had be » n praised . Our balance sheet * were before the country at diir-rreij . ; " times . Z ^ o dissatisfaction was manifested upon the pan of the Rev . Gentleman ; bnt becicse Mr . PMip s policy did not chime in with ilr . Hill ' s ¦ views , it became necessary to get rid of him ; and , c ^ aseQuectiy , 35 a dutLcdietd child , he was selected oa : as the fir-i victim to be offered' up at the shrine
of lhe Kcv . Gentleman ' s mischief-making and unioncesvroyirg propensity . The other members of the Executive stood by Mr . Philp on that occasion , because they believed and knew him to be an hone : > : and sound-hearted Chartist ; and , in stepping in betwixt h : is aud the denunciator , endeavoured , as far as possible to prevent his poiitic&i destruction ; and hi ? relentless pursser only succeeded by the CiOsr barefaced asd deliberate set of cool headed tyranny thut t . v = r was perpctriivd betwix : man and man . On the Saturday previous to the election of-the new Executive taking place Mr . HiE aceused Philp oi being a dishonest pol ; tic : ap , and not" fit to . Le a memoer 01 the 1 ' X-ecctive . Mr . Phf ] p on the Sunday attended a meeting at ^ Newton Heatn , ( this wa ! s after the appeAraace of 3 ir . Hill ' s denunciation ) at which meeiing a resolution was passed giving their coaSienee to Mr . Philp and the Executive . Similar resolutions were passed in Manchester , one of them
pernaps the m « st imponant ever held in that cisrricij nsn ; e ' : j , xhe Sonth Lancashire Delegate Meeting , and the other at the Carpenter ' s Hall . In those resolutions Mr . PhL ' p ' s name was distinctly mentioned in each resoiuiion , and sent to the ILtv . Gentleman for insertion . Did he publish ihem * 2 s " o . Mr . Phiip ' s liame was caxefullv erased from both ; and when }> 1 t . James Leach applied to Mr . Hill in his c-fiee to know why Mr . Philp ' s name as a member of the Executive , wal erased ficm the resolutions ; that gentleman dtciareii that if a thousand resolutions wcrc ieLt every week , ¦ with Mr . Philp's name in them , there should not one of them be inserted . Mr . Philp , tke same week he attended Isew ; oa Heath , attcLcen a meeting a > . Cncriey . at which hs enrolled fjr : y-two njimbers , and at which a resolution of coiiScenee and inanga ^ vas tendered io him and sent to the Star , but shared iV . p fate of the others .
Another resolution was sent fr ^ Ei Mrr-hyr T ^ -dvil disapproving of par ; of an address thai the Executive issued to the country , the Wuriiiu ; : of which was altered by Mr . Hili , who headed- the resolution ' the Excciitivc j-&p . " TMs joke wa > truly a ricn one ; Leach , who has done oiie mai . ' s share in the advocacy of Chani .-m ; Leach , who more than any oilier man in this country h ^ s opposed by his powtr : ui reason and argument the ami-Corn Law League ; Leach , who has travelled far and near , at all iinv-S and hoars , to combat : he lecturers of tiat parry , sne generally has proved successful ; yet this fccn ^ st £ iid upright men hss bet-n taunted 6 y Mr . Hiil isith ffehui ; what he has been pltased to cali £ sop , aiid not oniy thai , but with being morally 5 X 3 poiiticaiiv dishonest .
Brother Chartists , rtii- ct well upoa thoss grave charges ; sua ,: U > 2 ve all , weigh weL lhe services Mr . i Lfa ' .-h has rendtred . in orcer that jou maj hoDes' . iv isdfc-e whether those services , and his political . ' coi . > i ? icncY and iniegTi ; y , vr i iI not . overbalance Mr . iil . i s fii * e acd unfuuiictrd asseniocs . "ft c- ^ id 2 u Douail tender a s ,-p , o the Repeakis ! Le : Lancashire and Yorkshire , who h ^ ve been scctir . c Jit-i to htar iaii troin nis lips . thriiling aud ek-qcri .-t demiciations againsr that band of in-e- . l-ou . trs t : pon ibe poor man ' s labour .-sa ' y-whether he : s tre person to ofiVr a sop to the free-trader ' . ii'Doual ; , whose powertU ; ari'umrn ; s . and cunin ^ E 3 rca ; iii , h ji torn to shreds iLc S ^ issy and fallacious c-rvturiLgi uf those avaricious ucsTroytrs of thv rights o : industry , whose clear , &nd , at the same Tits ? , raLi . ; y and firm exposures of the heU-spawn crui .:::-. s j racriced on the while sia ^ es o : England . cacLot be the man to offer a sop to the * e iite tracers in htiman £ - _ ~ h and blood . . - ] No , no ; ue have known M'Douall in his btjter cays ; we Lave known him when he had his horse londe , anl we have seen him when he had scarcely a coat to his back , cr a meal to eat , still sharin ^ 'his last pci ^ LV rnth his hungered snd oppressed coontrymeB ; we have seea hid through aii the pewits o ; political appearance ever the honest a ^ d fearless advocate of the poor oppressed , slid the nian ' . y aid unflinching opponent of the i ; ch oppressor . \ YC have seen him alas an exile iroin his coULtry—from his dear wife and child , and all those iLst ars most near and dear to him ; we rcTtre his memory , and , in his absence , neither open ' foe cr pretended frieEd shall fasten upon him the ccic-as brand of swindler , cmbczsler , an * dvfrander . Oh I but then M'DouaiJ has received 5 . 2 per week C"l o : the : ui ; q = rssistrti Jrom the poor-weavers' pence . Kc-w inttuiously this trace has been borrowed , as i ; all lhe rt- ^ ard M'Douali and the Executive baJ ^ for tne poc-r Wiavers , was to dip their hands in ' tbe WLavtis ' pcckets and become Aristocrats out of their jocr petce . The last tine we had the pkasurein being in this ' biave arc honest xcan ' sVcispany , we sar h : m pr . li ire las . rtiii-. Eg he Lad cut of his potket , ^ nd dindc ; it-betwixt two pcor weavers , borrowing a ' -sixpence ] frcm a frieid to give to a thirc that w ^ s with them . Mr . Hili ea'lB sivitg this extra Ife . to M'Douall frsud , tLid tinbeiz ' -ing of the Sccietr's fccdf , a treai ^ sg of the rales , ai > d under o ! r > er circumsiaices , would svxj-a the i ^ xecmive to transportauoa . W e le ^ n . 15 paxdon , and hope hd will have Etr-.-y en us till afi < j tie itx : assizes ; Jn the . E-iaz : i ~ e . we ^^ st : ^ e him we feel sirry indeed jhat """i" caii ' i a-low h : m somethicg : c hi * exile , as well . as scheming to support hfs . wife and child . ^ But , tii ^ t , tve ha \ e broken lhe rules ei the Society , ly s . l ' . Lwihg Mr . Ciapbeil £ 2 a wetk , while Me T . ere rot si :: i-g . TTeceETtLa .: this is either a fxir cr Lcsest c ; . E > : rcc-: * 3 cf ' th ? zneanirg cf the 51 st K--. i . which ixe « the salary cf the Secrttsry at £ 2 : | ¦ ¦ ' - ^ wvulu c Lcidly a « k ai ; y reascnsble ilse , row :: > t- - -- o l = that iLe s . £ iirs o : tLc S . c . wtj tcula be c :- - _ -t-i w . thc-Lt a Secretary coi : iiii = j- v acrirg , ^ d i-,-. 7 jouic the labours afcjye d ^ eribr-i It . per-.
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formed without the person so performing them being remunerated ? The lSJi rule s » ys " That the Executive shall be empowered to adopt any measures for the advancement of the objects cf this Association as may be consistent with its fundamental Jaws . " We therefore contend that the fair and legitimate construction put upon mis clause should be , thai vre are empowered to elect a permanent Secretary , whose salarv is fixed by the 2 ist rule . If aay thing was wanting to confirm this opinion , we wouid call upen the members Of the society ' . o Carefully ^ Xiciue the rules , and then say whether it is possible for the organization to extend in the country if we were not to have % permanent Secretary I Then if a permanent Secretary be necessary , it is quite evident that it is necessary that we should pay him for his services . And now let us tell you a few facts as to the treatment we have received as an Executive .
The 22 nd rnle says , " When members of the Executive shall be employed as missionaries , their salaries shall be the same a ? when employed in the Cjuncil : coach-hire auei one-half of any other incidental expences snail be paid to them in addition by the parties who Bay require their services . " Row we can prove that the above clanse has rot been adhered to in the localities where we have acted as lecturers . We give the following samples of its violation : —We went to Birmingham , af : er many strong invitations , and with the understanding that cur travelling expences would be paid . Ou this point , bowevtr , we were completely deceived : instead of our espeijces briuj ; paid , the Local Council Mine to a v iUe that thvy would net allovrus one half-penny , ba : that we should be paid from the genera . 1 fund , and after being tt considerable expense of coach hire and living at Birmingham , we were indebted to the kindness of a friend for the means to get home atiain .
We assembled again in London , and met exactly with the same treatment as in Birmingham , with the exceptkn of the vote ; in fact , we were obliged to borrow money from Mr . Cieave to bring us home . We could lay before you scores of such cases if it were necessary , but we thiLk the above quite sufficient . Now , Brother Chartists , it has ever been our sincere desire to keep down difF-rences and disconteni ; it has also been onr wish to refrain from mak-rg statements of the way in which we have been treated , but unfortunately ilr . Hill has compelled us ffiDch against our will to do so ; we do it witii sorrow , but there is no other course left for us to defend ^ ourselves from his unjust and foul aspersions . "We little thought that struggling as we have done for years in the cause of Liberty , tha : we should be called morally and politically dishonest for endeavouring to do that which in our judgm-. nt we thought best calculated to promote the welfare of the society and the cause of the people .
Brothers , for the present we take uur kave of ytU , and call upon you , m your several localities , to examine into tne charges " preferred against us , and if , alter a fair investigation , you should come to the conclusion rbat we are no longer worthy of your confidence , express your opinion through the medium of fhe Star , and we will most willingly retire ; but if , on the contrary , you come to the conclusion that we are honest democrats , you will , through the same medium , record your vates . We impatiently await your verdict . We remain , Yours , in the bonds of union , James Leach , President , JuH-N CiMfiitLL , Secretary .
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OX THE PROPRIETY OF THE WORKING CLASSES AID 1 > 'G THE CORX-LAW REPEALERS , —IX AXSWER TO J . POPPLE" 5 VELL , OF ELXAXD-EDGE . SlR , —1 cannot help feeling great pleasnre that tee first letter which I wrote upon tte above subject should have created such a general Ee : ; tatiDn as I find it has , for the subject is one of vast importance at the present moment ; still I cannot help regretting that both S- K-^ nd yourself sh ould have btta so determined to mism . ' 3 trsfciud my intention in the writing of that letter . Through the whole of your letter you write npon the assumption that 1 advise the CluirLists to join the Corn-Law Rrpea ' . ers for the purpose of putting the Whi ^ s
into power again ; when , if yon tad not been determined to go wrong , the coiuaionegt aitention to my letter vn . ai-3 have shown you that I there said— " It beii-. g eviceijt that the middle classes will not assut the v orkisg clas-es to obtain that ¦ scice in the making of the laws wUeh alone an permanently letter their condition until tbry , the middle classes , itcotnc alarmed for il . eir own si ' . ualioii , I ccntend that it is the duty of tbe wortiiij ; ciasses to endeavour , by all ?> ie < jns tcithix thtlr potser , to brirg about ' a consummation so devoutly to be ¦ w-ishfcu . '" And I aUo in that ietter recommended the Chartists to assist in the agitation of tbe Repeal , as ii means of tesib . g one ± ei of eitttiies , or HARASSING BOTH OF TKE . M .
Xuir , Sir , if jon had paid attention to these things you might have spared yourself the tspfence of much viituous indignation which yon have Tented at the idea of agaia Eupporting the "base , bloody , aadbrutals , " and that would tave enabled you to have paid more attention to the real questions which ought to have been discussed in that letter . And , as those subjects appear to me of paramount importance , I shall take the liberty of asjiin laying them before you in the same form which I did in my letter to S . EL which aie as folio * : — "It will be evident to all who have read my first letter , that from the motto prefixed to it , and from the composition of the first paragraph , I appeared to donbfc tbe } u £ tice or propriety of rtsoning to any but Etiictly honourable mrans for the attaining any great object But , I concluded that if the parties with ¦ whom we have to do keep no measure of faith , if they resort t-o
anything or tvervtbing , no matter how tricky or base , to prevtnt us obtaining our just ends , I thiDt the end weald sanctify the meats , even if we did return tbe t > : > z , itnls of she po : s 3 Eed chalice to their own lips , and Lo'it them from tbeir ur just position by means of their ovrn petard . " Xuw , sir , this was one of tke positieDS whkh you ought either to have endeavoured to controvert , or to have acknowledged . If you had contro-Ttrrtrd it . the whole of the snhst ^ uent reasoning woul ' . t necessarily have fallen to tbe gruund ; and if you bad acknowledged it tbe whole matter in dispute would hare rescued itself into the question , " tchtiher the rcpiai of the Co ~> Lxirs trott ' ct fi . ire a tendency to cavtf ;/ . ' - Miad e cluars io become alarmed for their own sitw . i 7 / k . T a > . d cotii ^ faem- ' y cauj ~ e ihtm to join lhe people / or Ut ' r . t io obiav . i ; i < a ! p-j-ctr in lhe Lejis ' . alurc which . AS'D QXLY MHIL'H . can preverd the midd'c cias&es J , om heii , j sirat . ticzd up Iv i ? tv nu t off . tvd payments . ''
" Here th » -whole thing wonld have been in a nutshe !; , and if you had taken them either jointly or sin $ ! y , we ihould not have been in danger cf losing the whole question in a labyrinth Gf , at the btst , but secondary consequeiiCrS . " The vf hole of the above two paragraphs apply BtTictly to ji : U , sir . tut as jon have vritten lehcu txtraneous tucttci I will foiivyw joti ihioucb it , and I shall show jou how easy it is for a man who writes withc .-ut any tis-. d principle , to mistake the side of a cause he is dei \ np : nr . ^ nd how he consequently falls into the greatest of : » r : siiniitie 3 .
Y ^ u btrgin by UUicg me that I am a young man , and that when I aia your ace 1 sh 3 U know better . Rcaily this aspuiEptkn cf superior trisdem does not tell -well , with cut you thd sic ^ n it by more clearly refuting tie positior . 51 had taken . But . however , I beg to tell you that 1 am i : o chicken ; I h-Te grown grey in the cause , baring bcin twenty-Svc year * upun the stage , and altlii'Bgh the put I hsTe f layed n ^ y not ba" » e been as co ^ spicioas as yours , stiJl you mu : i injw that tbe
bns-: ' e cf the stage-sweeper is as Eccessarj to tbe success cf the piece as the strut of the tragedy hero ; und that all ¦ onr ho ^ uur cozsUts in " paring T 7 eli " the part allotted : to us . It is Uue that , as the foul said to Lear , ' I oui ; ht
to bv 3 ijfed for bting old t-efcre I was wise , " still if I h-T = nu ; had the happiness of living at your much- TaaMed Livcrsci ^ c cr Hecimcnuwike ; and if I have net i a-. S the priviiete of harinj , " ijme mentor to take me ly ihc hand and itad me to the fert of some political XcstcT ' far renowned f » r a- ; e and sense ; " still in the liarkcit light of the politics ! hemisphere . I hive alwajs shone , though with a faint , jet a steady light , to show •¦ iuv whereabouts . '' I acknowledge that when tie po ^ iti- cil tcai : spherc tus been clear ; whtn constellations of far grtr&ttr tr : ghvnei 3 feave made t ! : gir appcarjiice ; "when ILttrJIS Of diZZLin ^ ipl = ndoui li . iv ^ dashed athwart the Ui . iVt . r 5 t .-, flxiti ; ill eyes upon their path , I have been Cvjuputeiy lost in tte ga-LSv cf Uient - , still when I Lave struggled hard , - whej : I tsve done my little best to ti . ice , it is tard to reproach n-c because I cannot » iv = greater light than it tas pleiScd he&ven to grant j Rir . Yea say that you " ¦ wotjM as sson join the infernal sr : r ; ta as a Ecaiisto obtain htSVtn , ^ s join tae Whics to ott-::. the Chiit-r . " An cid author , whose works I lecollect reaciiig scnae-wheie . ol-s = rved that figures cf 5 Ttt . ci ; ¦ R- fcxe tcge-tools , and tvro-edged tools tvx > . Snpj .-c-i = ttcn that these ij-f-. nial spirits "were ycur greatest cl-sUc ' ts ro rear obtaining heaven ; and suppose that in t ttcir iuftrcal wiscom , they were contemplating some m _? tr :-s ' .:--ke of policy , which , as they thought , tt&s to prcVt-rt ycer ever attaining feiidty ; acd suppose that yvu were certain that S they compiled the point ttt-y hid in view they would eScctually remove thtmse vee . as azi obitacleto yow obtaining happiness : snp- yose those thicts , wonld you not wish tiem to sue- ctbd T ^ > * culd you cot talio them on ? K ' ouid you ne ; "join" and assist them , totmmble them from thit I pciitiou ic which they were ycur grtatt ^ t obstacle to the obtaining c-f heaTen ? What ! sir , had yea rather remain in leU undtr tke " Bitid piUrcal sway" of tbe " iaftTaal spirit ? , " tfco . br guilty of so base an action as tsjistscg lht . ni to ' tuiLDle thtiLit ' iVcS from that position which is cne of ycur greatest kiiidr ^ uces . to glory ? Would 50 U do this ! If jvu would you are a kind man ! And , if you are , 1 s-n-p ' e cf th = Htctmocdwike ai : d Liveitdge ptop ' . v , ther art- kiad ijals : Full of tLe " njlik of human . tiE-tneES . " Oh , tasr I envy ttcin Y . j go 0 :. 10 ssy . " Jf I was a IicJccrat I wculu rzif ^ r my htzL V j l-e cut f : . m n : y > v > . y before I vronid : ulii .: t to ^ rti .-t . ul Li tbe C . ru L . ~ n 5 Tiihont a repeal cf ¦ e r . cbt laws , r . ' . i ' j ' . j ' c : Js r . M ! ii . ' - ( J is t'or .- ' ruuiXs 2 deli , ye : I w .-ul . ! c . t su ^ i : t to his ' *« "« through a repeal cf ; i . e Cm 1 ^^ -s . ' Tcu are itii ! so tied : " But | ¦ ¦
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let us just enquire a little what this debt la , and how it was contracted . Well , then , it appears ihat during the iate war , undertaken for the purpose of pstting down the rising libsrty of France , it was necessary to trper d a certain amount of money yearly ; and you have told us , and justly too . that the " expences of the state ought to be paid yearly / ml as poor rates are ; but instead of the expences of the state being paid yearly , a certain amount was borrowed of somebody , which amount forma what is called the national debt . Xow , Sir , it is a well known fact , that during the ¦ w&r the taxes which were paid by the labourer , in one shape and another , amounted to , at the least , one third of bis income . Itcoald easily prove it to be much more , bnt I choose to be under rather than ever in my
statements . It i » equally well known that the whole expenditure of the country was about seventy millions a year during the war ; and it is an admitted fact , that the income of tb . 8 nation from all kinds of property , during tbe same period , was foar hundred and thirty millions a year ; and therefore if that amouut had been taxed in tbe same ratia as tbe working man ' s income , that is one-third , we should ha ^ s bad a yearly rereane of one hundred and forty-three millions . And as the expenditure was eeveEtj millions a year , we should have bad a yearly surplus of aixty-tbree millions ; which sum multiplied by twentr-fiTe , the number of years the wai continued , would have left as a surplus of one thousand five hundred and seventy-five millions in the exchequer , instead of our being » ight hundred millions in debt !
Thus , then , Sir , it appears that tbe way in which tbe " landoerata have sinned In contracting a National D-bv is by having lent the nation the amount they o-ujht to have paid in tates . and then claiming interest for it as for a debt ! This is a most curious way of sinning , and a most carious retribution you would give them for their Eins ; that is , you wonld secure taern the whole amount of the exorbitant profits of their estates by means of Corn Laws rather than the rent should go to the paying off the interest of a debt which they ongbt to have paid in taxes ! And what makes it still more curious , that interest must be paid by ycur mnch-loved workies in' the shape of dear corn , when he had paid his full quota of taxes dnring the war . Amiable man ! But again , you observe , and truly too , " that the expence of the state ought to be paid yearly , the same as the poor rates . "
Now . Sir , what would you thiDk of a " landocrat , " even thoush it should be " John Bessie , " who , instead of paying his share of the poor rate should propose to lend the amount to the parish , and tall it a debt , and want to receive interest for it of the parishioners ? What would you think , Sir , of a " landocrat sinning " in that way ? But what wonld you think of a " landocrat ' 'enacting l&ws that the inhabitants of a neighbouring village , who had not permitted their " landocrat to bin in contractiBg a debv" , should not bring food into bis Tillage for fear that his tenants could not pay him . both his rent and the interest of his debt which he ought to have paid in poor rates ? Bat more especially , what would yon think of a " Chartist , "a " philanthropist , " one who had tbe interest of the wotkine man so very
much at heart , who sLonld refuse to aid his parishioners to obtain the repeal of such unjust laws , for fear that such repeal should " ruin" the " landocrat , " whe had " sinned in contracting » parish debt ? " Thus you see , Sir , that for fear of acknowledging that I was right when I said it was the dnty of the working man te endeavour , by all the means in his power , to alarm them for their situations , you have run into the grossest of absurdities . Yon have improved upon the divine piecept which teaches us to " love our neighbour es ourselves ; " and have inculcated that we ought to " love our enemies" better than ourselves , or you would not have implied that starving wives and raeged children ought to continue to suffer for fear of rmning the " landocrat who had sinned in contracting a debt " he ought to have paid in taxes .
After being very indignant at the misdoings of both "Whig and Tory , you say , " but I would be joined to Lord Howick and company almost , before I would bo prevailed upon to join them . " As you , Sir , have not endeavoured to explain what you mean by this allusion , I , of course , can only guess at your meaning . Some two er three years ago , during a debate upon the distresses of the country , it was stated in the newspapers that Lord Howick bad naed words to the following effect : —" That as there were no incendiary firee , he could not think the distress was so great as it had been represented . " I do not know that his Lordship used these words ; nor do I kuow that these words are what you allude to ; but I shall take them as if they were , a : ; d make a f < = -w remarks upon them as bearing upon the suVject in hand .
As there is a law which subjects any one to transportation who shall write or speak anything having a tendency to bring the Houbb of Commons into cont < rinpt , I durst not , even though I were certain that hii Lordship had uttered then . Bay anything in contradiction of his wisdom or policy in making use of such expressions . As his Lordship may be an heriditary legislator , as he is not only a " senator , " but a " ge :: t ' . eaisn born , " I d 3 re not dispute the wisdom of his telliug the labourers in so many words that if they ¦ were in the situation they are described to be- ; if they were bound to hive "eaten their beds" for want ; if there were ten thousand in one small district in Manchester , withont a bed to lie on ; if they had to eat
rotten potatoes gathered from the wharf to subsist on ( inLtedt ); if they had to steal sea weed , laid on the the Jarid for in arm re , In order to prolong existence ; if they were in the state that , as Mr . Aldaru , M . P ., is reported to have said , they must be starved down to the required quantity ; I dare not dispute his Lordship ' s wisdom in saying that if-the labourers were in this state , they would make the country one continued blaze , and that , of course , if they want tbeir grievances redressing that is the way to obtain it Nor dare I ask what would be the character of a House of Commons , if they would ait , and hear such sentiments put forth . But I do know what would have been the fate of any Chartist , speaker , or writer , who . should have uttertd or written such expressions .
But , Sir , why should you propose to join Lord Howitk ? You , who wonld not submit to the " ruin of the landocrat who sinnsd in contracting a National Drbt , he ought to have paid in taxes ; " " you , who almost faint at the idea of our injuring the infernal spirits who keep us from heaven ; you , who weep such doleful diatribes ovtr tbe wives and families of tbe farmer , and landlords being tumbled into the streets even by John Bcs ^ c ; you , who have so much " charity and love , " that you intimate that I ought to be answered by the shoe toe for proposicg to jjin the repealers in order to alurm the middle classes for their situation ; why should you propose to join Lord Howick ? What end bave you in view by such joining ? Come , out with it . Why , because it would alarm them for thtir situation ! Just the position I have taken ; and I must leave ic to the country and yourself to divine which is the more honourable aud preferable course .
But , fi . idi :. g that my remarks have already run to a great lecgtb , I will crowd ail I have to say at present into a few sentences . You will please to keep in mind that the great question is " Whether it would be wise to join the repealers , if repeal would cause the middle c ' as es to beccxie alarmed for their situation , and consiguc-nHi / cause them 10 join the people to obtain Shut power in ihe legislature , which , AXD ONLY WHICH can i- ievent the middle c ! ti ± sesfrom being sualloived up by the lju ' f of jtrtd puimeiils . ' Xo ^ thtn , let us see what is jour opinion npon this qiustion , as far as it can be gathtttd from your letter .
You say , " I know wL- have a d&sl to contend with , but Petl ' s biil is making Chartists as fast as Pitt ' s notes m&dfe ToHts ; aje , and it is tumbling tbe nousta down in nearly the same ratio . "' True . But how is Peel ' s bill aiskrng Chartists ? Why , by the bums turning wives and children into the sSrett In short , by ALARMING them for their situation ! Just my position . You again say , " I know that it is hard work te make politicians , but cow that Peel has begun , Jet us redouble our z ^ al , anil try if we caneot make them as fast by reasoning as he c . in by giving two pounds of beef for one to th * j pensioner . " And how is it that Peel makes Chartists by
! ] I I i j j j ; ! i | j ! j i ' j i ! , j I ' , ' \ ' ; giving two pounds of fcetf instead of ore ? Simply 1 because they become alarmed for their situation . ! Farther on you say " If yon can prevail upon W . P . ! to bold his hand a bit , ai . d just give Peel a fair opportunity of paying the interest cf the debt in fljnr at Is . . 6 J . per stone , and beef at 3 d . per pound , and to pay all j fixed obligations , at the same rate be will have no occa-1 sion to j > in the Whigs to repeal tbe Corn Laws ! We I shrill tuve the whole country flocking to cur standard I like dore ^ to the windows . '' And why , sir . should they S jck to our standard because flour was la . 6 d . per st . and I beef threepence per pound ? Btc :. U 6 fc they are afai-med ! for tbeir situation to be sure ! Then sre yon " a good 1 and Well-informed Chartifct" if jon expect converts from j such a source ? ! Thus you will see , Sir , how eaey it is for a man to ! forget the side of the- question he is defending when he j wr ites without any weU-defined principles , and the i absurdities he necesfarily falls into in consequence . , ' Your own good sense wiil suggest the castigation I i could give you over these extracts ; but I wiil spare it ; fer the present , and conclude in the words in which I ¦ concluded the letter to S . K . Sothiiip lut hdn-j ala , nitd for their ou-n safely trill ! eror couvir . ee ihe riiidd ' e c ' uszesof the necetsUy of lakiTia ! part tritii the labou . er ; and they must be convinced too , : that NOTHING BUT hiking part with the labourer can ; save ihem from the gu-f of jired payments . Eepealofthe ' Corn Latts trou d hy capital prtti ) ate at ihe feet of fixed , payment , noi could it iscupe without the aid of the labourer . ; THEN HUKRAH FUR REPEAL OF THE CORN ! LAWS !! \ V . P .
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TO THE EDITOK OF IHE hOKTHEKX SIAK . Sir , —It affords me tte highest degree of pleasure and satisfaction to see the industiiojis classes enjoying the pleasures and fruits of their labours , aud the bonifies of Divine Providence ; r . or can the man be guiltless who would deprive his fellow creatures of that which rv . ure requires , cr of the blessings which , a bcCcnncien ! Creator has , in his infinite wisdom , proficcd for his sustenance , comfcrt , and gratification . There are , hewever , s . variety of things in which we i ^ oulire Shr . t ere neither esential to cur existence , nor calculated to administer to our rtal enjoyment ; but are in numce . 'less casts alike injurious tc- tt « life , health , ir-. mis , :. nd fcaiiphuss it those , who , unfortcEatcly , are sdciclcd to their use .
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Therenerex wag ' a-period in British history when self-denial became more ; absolutely necessary , or more imperatively a duty than the present . Vast numbers of British mbjects , men , women , and innocent children , are literally dying by inches of sheer want in the midst of a profusion of everything needful Many of our talented , honeathcarted , courageous , but sympathising patriots , are immured in the ; tyrant ' s dungeon , or prisoner * at large , awaiting what is called their trial for tbe crime of pointiagto thetrue cause , and to the only remedy of all on * national evils . Appeals ! have been made through tfi » democrafcic press to our generosity in favour of a defence fund for our persecuted brethren , but our response hitherto has been of the feebler character ; our sympathies have not , as yet , been sufficiently awakened . The case is one of urgent necessity and should not be tampered with . It would be the
basest ingratitude te leave our friends unaided in . the hands of a mercileBS , cruel , and despotic government Many of the poor fellows are looking forward with horror to the time when they most be arra ! gned before a class of remorseless ; fi « nia , who Will .-bring all the prostituted talent and diabolical influence they can master upon the devoted heads of their intended victims . It remains for ns working men , to Bhew the sincerity or hypocrisy , of our professed principles by saying whether or no we Bhatt allow our patriotic brethren to be sacrificed by the polluted hands of malignant persecutors , perjured vampires , traitors and prejudiced juries , with the ghost of bloody old Jeffries at their head . Money must be raised , and the best counsel in the kingdom must be procured , and hollow-hearted viliany and cotruption , if possible , openly exposed , that the intended victims may escape a Holberry ' s fats , and their wives and children the horrors of a bastile .
We will not , we cannot plead poverty in extenuation of our guilty indifference in these matters , while we are spending millions of our hard earnings in intoxicating drinks and tobacco , which gives us nothing- in return but inaividual misery , domestic ruin , destitution , and premature death ; while it puts into the hands of our oppressors ^ the means of carrying on their unholy warfare against the rights and liberties of the peopla It may be plain John , or Sir James that may carry on the war ; but it is feols that supply them with pence . Let me tell you , Mr . Editor , how I think we ongbt to do , and . what we must do if ever we succeed in effecting those organic changes in the institutions of our country thai aie necessary to its future prosperity . : :
From the vast numbers who signed tbe late National Petition , ' the extent of onr public meetings and demonstrations , I may fairly infer that we have two millions of male adults professing Chartist principles ; more than one half of these spend from sixpence to a shilling weekly in tobacco alone ; but take the sixpence and it will amount to twenty-five thousand pounds p ' er week , which multiplied by fifty-two weeks in the year , gives us £ 1 . 800 , 000 . This is a part from what issjsent in intoxicating drinks by the same parties . Three-fourths of this sum goes directly into the hands of your ¦ worst enemies ; so while we are contributing now and then a halfpenny to extend democratic principles , we give nine hundred and seventy-five thousand
pounds to Government to put us down , and puff the other three hundred and twenty-flve : thousand into the air almost as ridiculous as the other . Let us , my friends , cease to purchase and use this nasty , trashy poisonous weed , and appropriate our time and money to better purposes . Let us take a little more than onethird of the above sura , say . £ 500 , 000 , and let it be laid out in the 'following manner j and aucfa would be the altered state of society in one year , that all the powers oa eart * l combined could not stay the progress or binder the speedy triumph of democracy . £ 500 , 000 might be carefully disposed of in the following way : — For carrying on the cause , say „ . „ . 60 , 000 A defence fund ... ... ... ... 60 , 000 To expand in political works for gratuitous
distribution ... ... ... ... 5 » , 000 To support twenty-one democratic papers , with » weekly circulation of If 000 , at 5 d . each ... ... ... ... ... 330 , 800 £ 500 , 000 Again , I woald adviseevery working man to abandon the use of intoxicating drinks . We should recollect that Government receives some twenty millions annually from this source . From parliamentary returns it appears that fifty-two millions sterling is the cost of intoxicating drinks . Much valuable time is thus thrown away in the public-house , which ought to be spent iu reading and storing our miiids witll Useful knowledge . .
A drunken , puffing , spouting , refennlng politician is a disgrace to the cause he professes to serve , and ' is a stumbling-block in the way of reform . That nauseous insect , with all its filth and stench , the bug , might justly indict such a fellow as a nuisance , for presuming to practice his worse than beastly habits in its presence . The Chartists above all others should not practise nor tolerate Bucb inconsistencies . If the hints I have thrown out were ndopted and fairly carried out , Sir Robert and his cronies in vice would soon have to gsze on the proud eminence of Chartism till their blignted vision sank in obscurity befpre the brightness of imperishable truth and
righteousness . By inserting the above , you will oblige A Constant Reader Of your extensively circulated paper
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ESSAY ON THE PRESENT SYSTEM . PART V . We have seen the drjgin of the system—we have examined its nature and charadter—let us look more narrowly into Its effects . And first , there is not a creature in England , from the Queen on the throne to " The maid thajt milks and doeB the meanest chares , '' from the duke to the coal-boy , that is not cursed by this accursed system . The rich are cursed by the crimes which it induces—the poor by the want . It is a system that pervades all ranks , all classes , all employments . The three professions , law , physic , and divinity are infected by itw hvit , for the benefit of lawyers , is made to distort justice—i-pbysic for the benefit of doctors to destroy health—and religion for the benefit of parsons to corrupt Christianity . It rules the army and navy where money buys command over merit . The fine arts are not exempt from its blasting influence . If a
man ef genius , whether a poet or paiiiter , a niusteian , a sculptor , or an architect , bu an honeBt man , he will find his honesty a bar to hiB success . If a man of science be poor bis inventions will be purloined by the rich , who wiU get patents for them , and rob him of tha reward of his ingenuity . Ic is a system that has changed tha character iof the great to little . The ancestors of our dukes , marquisses , and earls used to feed the poor at tbeir gates ^ -but their degenerate posterity , the present bastard breed , are noble only in name , and they drive the poor gleaners from their fields and follow them into the workhouses , where they examine the weights and measures to see that tbe poor wretches get no more than tne allotted portionof skilly—lest they should live and not die . It is a system that has made honesty ( said to be ths best policy ) the worst policy , for shopkeeners
declare tbat , they cannot live honestly , and they find it necessary to discharge every honest journeyman , every conscientious servant None are profitable to them but those who can lie and flatter and cheat in their service . It is a system that has studded the land with palaces , castles , and country seats for the rich , but with bastiles , madhouses , and pr isons , for the poor—bastiles that are filled with b . « nn . l « leuRfottUBate 8 TU \ ned , not by ' thtir own vices and immoralities , but by the vices and immoralities of the great , who corrupt , who crusb , who absolutely compel their victims to isin , then punish their misery by worse misery , by cruelties more abhorent than hell itself—msdhouses where aro confined those whose hearts were broken , whose brains were turned by the disappointments which are the sure and certain hope of henest worth—and who are they in the prisons 1 We
are told that the great majority can m-ither read nor write ; and this is true , for government would keep us ignorant as asses that we might be treated as badly ; but it is not true , as some have inferred , that the ignorant alone are criminal , or the worst criminals . No , it is your learned clerks who escape by benefit of clergy , who are-too cunning to . be caught , or have influence or connections to buy theni off , or let them loose . It is a system that has profaned British soil with the steps of policemen—not only in lust-trodden cities but in those rural districts were innocence vainly seeks a retreat It is a system that brings rnaDy a good man to a bad end —• many a Btrong man to an untimely grave . Oh , -what millions will arise in judgment against this system—a syBtem that basished Frost , Williams , and Jones for no other crime but patriotism for seeking to save that which
is lost , lost peace , lost prosperity , for striving te restore our ancient constitution . It is a system that doomed five hundred Chartists to duiigeons , ; T am not ashamed at owning myself one of them . I should rather be ashamed at not halving been , one ; it is for the persecujted to glory—for the persecutors to be ashamed . ClayUn . ' and Holbtrry riave perished , and Peddie is perishing ; but their spirits will not perish , and cannot be confined—even now they walk the earth- It is a fcyfetern that forces men out of their proper sphere and drags them into the most unnatural , the most unmanly ways of gaining a livelihood , into occupations unseemly , revolting ; and women , who under a better system would b 9 what they were created to be , the angels of mien , women aie ^ denioraUa . d by this system , made moral plagues ; children , too , are doomed to exist like
reptilts , vtrmia . It 1 a a system that makes parents shut their own children out of their homes , out of their hearts—that fretess the blood * of ' nearest relationship and cardies the milk in a mother ' s breast It is a system thatbas fereducheurd-ot crimes and produced monsters in society , such as tbe Burkes , the Greonacres , the Cfoods , in whose characters j in whose countenances the man is lost ia the brute , the beast , tbe fiend . In short it is a system that calls virtue vice , makes truth a lie , honesty uishonoarable , justice 0 mockery , crime a custom , folly fafihionable , and religion a trade—that has made Mammon the idol of England , to which God himself is sacrificed by his ungodly creatures ; yea , this system has sunk England far below Htll itself ; for in Hell we read that only the wicked are tormented , tut in England tbe good are tormented .
Let any one conceive fuch a fictitious being , such a Utopian as a man ; hcn | st und true in evtrj "wotd and . act , and tell me , would not tfeat man have to undergo uiora scorn , more persecution than any other irian ? ¦ wcu ld not his life be a martyrdom ? hia death kkme
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could be happy . Such are the effects of thl « cursed system— -a system that has not only carsed England , but every country ; whet © English influence p revails . Captain Cook named the South Ssa Islands the " Friendly Islands , " because the people were the kindest he had ever met ; but they can no longer be named the " Friendly * —our system has reached them , has perverted them , cursed them ; and where is the country in which freedom or happiness reign , or sre about to reign to which onr Government , ever on the watch , does not send a navy with swelling sails and bristled cannon , to batter down the rising lights ef man ? Witness wronged Ireland , Cinada , Egypt , India , but above all , China ! where British bravery is now disgraced by the most cowardly war ever waged in the history of the world—a war that is rousing the
retributive hatred of all nations against us . Who is there that can now boast of being an- Englishman ? who can love to have his name identified with this country ? who but must blush to be born in it ? And are thtre those that can support such a system ? Alas , many . think it the perfection of wisdom ! thesa are to be pitied ; but there are others who support it from love of it—these are surely to be execrated ; others wrain support it for profit ' s sake—these are to be despised ; others oppose it though like Juggernaut it crush themhonoured be these : for no man who seeks to thrive by such a system is worthy the name of man , for it is impossible to do so honestly ; and dirty is : he , 'filthy beyond measure , who would rather live by dishonest means than by honest ones , if left free to choose ; but the system does not leave men free to choose—it ' . eaves them no alternative but vice or starvation .. Many causes of social dishonesty arid domestic infelicity naturally arise in this unparadised world , but the pystem leaves them not to chance ; like Kirkpatrick , it
makes sure . It is directly or indirectly the can ^ e cf almost every sin , eNety sotiow , eve . 13 suXciHig that , we commit or endure . Poverty is painful enough of itself ; but the system sets a man ' s poverty ever in hig "viewmakes him feel it constantly , racks him with it night and day . It knows no pity , no remorse . He who can willingly , wilfully support such a system ( knowing what it is ) is a devil , and not a man , he is a party to all the evils which it inflicts , an accessory before the fact to every murder which it commits . When our Saxon ancestors wished to express their sense of utter worthlessness they called it nideiung—to support this system is JUDERISG . Quakers refuse to pay chutchrates : but they pay taxes in support of this system—they ara averse to war ; yet they pay to carry it on—even the present disgusting and abominable war in China—let them be consistent—let them come out as Chartists , and it will shew that they do not willingly support such a system—that they ore wishful f * r a better system to support ( To be continued . )
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TO JOSEPH STUBGE . " My sonl aches To know , when two authorities are up . Neither supreme , how soon confusion . May enter'twixt the gap of both and take The one by the other . " Shakspeare . Sir , —I stop not to enquire whether God and- ' nature made you a Chartist , whether it was the histories of the anoient republics , Greece , Rome , Sparta , or of England itself in its democratic days ; whether you became a converb ; during your recent visit to America by comparing that country with your own ; or lastly whether joh as
as an Anti-Cornlawite were convinced of the _ hopelessness of your opposition witheut an extension of the Suffrage . Suffice it to say , that you found an association on foot ia Great Britain entitled the National Charter Association , and composed of men who felt their wrengs , who knew their rights , and who wished te restore their country to itself by making its institutions harmonize with truth and justice . You approve * of their objects , of their plans , yet yon did not join them . On the contrary you endeavoured to set up , not even an auxiliary association , but an antagonist oneyou are not only not with u * , but you are against us , and thus I prove it ;
You acted on the opinion that the conduct of the Chartists had rendered their name odious , bad exeit&d much prejudice afainat their principles . To avoid that odium , to evade the prejudice , you profess the same principles but under a different name—yon tbcught proper , to mask your battery . I believe you are . a philau thropiat , but you are not much of a philosopher or you would know that as it was the honesty of those prin ^ ciplos that rendered them odieus in the eyes of the privileged classes , se a . profession . of the same . principles even under a different name , was sure to subject you to like odium , te excite similar prejudice ; for it is the humanity of the CUartists , not . their name , that is dreaded or disliked by the inhuman factions . Whether , think you , is a mean submission to prejudice or a manly defiance of it , most likely to remove or repel it 7 You know that the very errors of the Chartists , like the failings of Goldsmith ' s brother , " lean'd to virtue's side . "
Having refused to incorporate with the old bodyhaving resolved to Bet up a new one , with yourself at the head of it ; having , in a manner said to Feargus O'Connor , " Stand back , I am holier than thou ; " you begin by altering the distinctive appellation of Chartism , the name by which it had become known ; a same hallowed by heroism , sanctified by martyrdem . What faith can we put in your sincerity when your first act was tbe removal of our landmark 1 I will not descend to record the numerous other instances you have given us fer suspicion . I will abide by your first general ones . The phrase " universal" would not do—you must alter
it to " complete . " Having adopted the principle , you boggled at the name—having swallowed a camel , you fltrainsdiat a gnat .. What do you mean by complete ? If you . 'toean what vre mean by universal , why make a changeling of Chartism ? You htive riot mended the phrase . I contend that your complete is a solecism in grammar . The word is more applicable to a pisce of workmanship than to a point of jurisprudence . Perfect would have been mote germain to the matter . But you have acted like the gypsiea , who , -when they steal a child , disguise or disfigure it "that it may pass as their own . "
¦ We . test the propriety of . words by their collocation . How dees it read ? Let us see . I am afraid that you will not live to finish , much less to complete the suffrage . Would not this be rank nonsense ? Yes , and as your complete auff ago has been designated "complete humbug , " so might it with equal propriety be styled " complete nonsense . " The wise are not to be fooled by it You have never defined your meaning , and I suppose it will only admit of Bardolph ' s definition . "Complete ; that is , wheii the suffrage is , as they say , complete : or , when the suffrage is , —being— -whereby—it
may be thought to be complete ; which is an txeellent thing . " Now the olu-. term universal has not only its own universality to recommend it ; but , moreover , it can quote precedent in its favour . It ia authored by antiquity—it is the term that was in use among the ancient Romans . When you refused to be baptized in the name of the Charter ; when you call your principles by another name—how can you avow , that your opinions are the same as burs ? In the words of the poet , they are " alike ; but oh , how different ! " If you are ashamed of our name , we will be ashamed of you . You are a nvncomformiwj Chartist ,. and the organ of your party is rightly termed the Nonconformist . .
A Friend should be a peacemaker . If any breach existed in our Israel , you ought to have healed it by the sacrifice of yourself , liko Curtius , rather than to have widened it ; but you have caused discussion , dissension , and division , where all should bave been peace , concord , and unity . You have occasioned a retardation of the . progress of liberty against oppression . Your next step will be to divert it . Why se * up your tent of disunion so close to our tent of union ? If a man dig a well so near another well as to divert the spring , our laws , defoctivu as they are in . justice , will give a remedy by an action on the case . You have opened a rendf « s-ous for " fickle changelings and poor discontents , " and sent round your recruiting strjtauti
to entice and enlist deserters . The love of novelty , the knowledge that the middle classes can pay more than the working classes ; the idea that you are a wealthy man ; ' all this has tempted a few needy adventurers into your service , has also tempted one of our Executive , one who wag with us , in " double trust , " who should against disunion have closed the door , not optced it himself ; but you have not been able , and you will not be able , to inveigle one sound . ' Chartist . Mahomet could not get the mountain to come to him—he was forced to goto the mountain . So will it be with you . The new movers could not draw the masses after them ; and this new attempt , in your name , will , be equally unsuccessful . It is is indecent for the Omega to expect the A Ipha . to bow to it .
But besides the mediocre advocates of midule-class union in your pay , you have some workinif-me !) in your ranks . We would say to them as Wallace- said to Bruce when he met him on the river side , " W hat do you in the ranks of your enemies—of tbe enemies of your country . Come back to your own order . Cross the Rubicon again . " The working-classes do not need , do not want , the middle-class to join them ; at least they will not join the middle class , for th ^ yknoTv from fatal experience , that to do so is but to lend themselves as tools in the hands cf their meanest and worst
oppressors . The Reform Bill has taught them a , leeson wkich they can never forget . That ttiey were duped then was the fault of the middle-class—it will be tbeir own fault if they arc duped 0 second time . What good can come of these Conferences with false fritniis ?—we want no intellectual sparring . Is it to gain time , , or to delude » 8 by some sliahfc-of-hand trick , some jugglery like tbtit of changing out name ? Mr . Stnrge , let me advise you to incorporate at once ; with , those wboee principles you avow ; or if you wish to keep , up ai Pi ) ar * Baic : il separation—bctup , not as a SuffragHit , but onotber ground .
, " Having waste ground enough , Shall you ce 3 ire to iaUtt the sanctuary An » i pitch your icvils there ?" Wishing yen to cease all fntthe ; ctteaspts at drswing a distinction withont a differcnte , I am , yo ur » , As &ra « is consistent with the cause , JoiiN WaTKINS ,
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THE FQUKDLING OF A \ R . ° ( Concluded . ) James was now pretty comfortable , earning twenty shillings per week , and more contented than those , who spend twenty pounds a-weefc withont earning it He took a small cottage , and his wife took in such work as she couM execute after her ova jjwas done . But J . ; . nes was not one who lived for himself alone , or even fi * his family— he was a citia ^ n of the world , and thougli he had not much time and but few opportunity of learning what waa going on in the world , except from hearsay , be road tbe weekly ii « wspap « rs . The conuuet of Government , with ita tffscta oa society , especially on his own class , did not pass unnoticed , uncrfticised , nor unopposed . by him . The Duke bad returned from his critical vistory f at Waterloo , won by the passive obedience and resistance of a wall of British troops « bo st . ) od aud received the charges of French cavalry with all the obdurate endurance with which they would have taken a , flogging 6 s their backs , by the ordir of their commarider-ui-chief . That Commander was uow ruling in the cabinet , and was strenuously
advocating the corn bill , for he had received Urge estates as a reward for " saving" his country , " aad it was fai ^ interest \ with which liis inclination was on good terms ) to enhance the value of his property , by protecting duties . Yea , England was now reaping the ffnit of her victories—having purchased glory abroad by the sacrifice of happiness at home . ; md like the garnished drum , all oise and show outoile , was "full of euipUness ' ¦ w : . thlu . The working ^ oen universally esecrated this famine-bill , and their attention was turned to Parliamentary reform as a means of repea . ing that , and all other class-laws—laws thut so panially incline the balance of justice . The indign :. tion which these measures of the Tories bad excited wasi . ken advantage ot by ' the Whigs W serve their own \ m ^ 7 purposes ; and , under pretence of serving the cause of tbepeppie , they . were carried into power by the Kef ¦¦ rm Bill , but were .-no sooner seated on hiph , ttian : hey kicked down theJadcier , and become as uiean'cs their preilecessors had T > een base . ... 1
The pressure of . the taxes on the one hand , witr . tbe love of extravagance which a nation proud of its greatness began to indulge on tbe other , caused the ini-. idle classes ( those apeis of the aristocracy ) to sit more tightly on the shoulders ef the working men , to bcrew down tbeir wages and to set up machinery , to comiiete " with men who not being comiHised 1 if nuh tou >( h metal were compelled to give up the race in despair . The middle classes were encouraged in this growing" selfishness by Government , who passed the N ^ w Poor Law Bill as an alembic to crush the'laat hopes of labour , and drive it from the laud- — opening sluices of emigration for that purpose . The masters were- "determined to keep , mp their high vtyle of living by lowering wages ; and it is in this m . innei they pay tha inceme tax , or any additional burthen
imposed ontbemby Government—pressing it out of the class below them . Tbe men saw the necessity of corabining to resist the combination among tbe matters for this purpose -they entered in Trades Unions , and James Ayr immediately joined , and was so eeil-jus and useful a member , that he was appointed secretary to the district where he lived . Government drawing its resources i . from * ' oppression , of course backed the oppressors , and prosecutions were issued against several members of the Union , under the pitiful pretence that they swore . ilfegaA . oaths to bind each other in conspiracy . The . fact is , that the working man needs not an oath to bind'him in brotherhood , — * bis word - of honour , like that of the peera , is aufflcient , arid hoi ' . estj is his bond . But , however , the parchestcr Labourers and Glasgow Cotton Spinners wore transported for
example ' s sake—transported by the Whigs—by tha very men who had taught them the principles they were now putting in practice . What was James ' s surprise to find those whose advocacy of reform went to the cuttiriff ' off of Queens' hsads , now actin g the part of the ; -Fox to the Goat in the fable ? Jumea saw the necessity of uniting not against masters merely , but against the Satanic power hehind the masters ; in Bhort , he be ' ajme a Chartist—one of those who are seeking to regain from tyranny the sceptre of tha people ' s patriotic sovereignty . He saw that Trades " Unions we , re of-benefit to the same extent that Oddfellows' Unions ' are , but not further ; as ho found that the contest . witli the masters was unequal , and ended in greater ' oppression . But Chartism , Hke Tradsa Unionism , was to be put down ; and the banishment of Frost . Williams , and Jones followed that of the Dorchestor and Ginscow men . Jnmea was bo indignant at
this , tbat he-. vented his 8-smpaUy in language vftnea the authorithies had once taught ,. but-now would not tolerate , and lie ^ as arrested , but held to bail . He traversed to the next assizes , but , in the intantirae , a 8 U )« : Was raised for him by hia biotlicr unionists sufficient to pay bis passage to America , whither , with his family , he flew , like Joseph , from persecution . All his hopes of freedom ^ or of a livelihood , being baffl . dseeing no prospect before him but a prison—having a large family dependent on him—he did wisely to spurn the slave-tro ' dden soil of Britain ; . he did well to shake the dust off . his shoes as a testimony against iw We see in his tJtampie , tbat the working man cannot be true to himself and to his ptder -wlUiQut encouutsring great trials . ; - James , though driven out of his own trade into * chemical factory , and out of that into another country , was ever hearty , as he was honest , and though he-neve * discovered bis paientB , Providence has been a father to tbe Foundling of Ayr and blessed bis endeavoura-in America .
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• . — ? ——' ¦ ¦ " ; ELLIS THE VICTIM . TO THE EDITOR OF THE KOBTHERN STAU . Dear sir , —Itis the last visit of the patriot ' s wife and offspring tothe victim ' s cell , to take a long and perhaps a last fareweSI , wliich now occupies toy mind in sad and thoughtful mood enwrapt . . What a scene ( He had hoped—fondly , hoped , by his frank profession of his honest opinions , by his public advocacy of the great doctrines of trutb ., and the heaven-born principles of juNtice ; by his virtuous , if not vigorous exertions in the cause of righteousness between man and man , not only to have benetttted his country generally , but especially to have elevated in the social scale the chosen of -his youthful heart , and tbe dear pledges of their mutual love , and now he behoids th » m—killing sight!—his darling wife
howidowedand disconsolate , and his unconscious hel pless chiaren fatherleatrtwid destitute . But thun he is allowed , as a , last favour , to touch , to handle , to embrace , to cirisp to his . bosom the motber anfl ber babus—to s ' ^ e them such a squeeze «' aB erst he gave them not . " Siirely even tyranny , base as now 'tis grown , cannot deny this last poor consolation . Alaa ! why dol 'tlius'drmm Thick walls and strong iron , effectually divide asunder those who had lovingly sat side by side , communed over -the -cheerful meal , and calmly slept in each other ' s arms . See Jtiow the manly cheek , " furrowed by un , merited care , is plouphsd by the He tour , while , with inexpressible , anguish , he looks , knowing he must'look " there no morD—upon all that ' s dear tohinrin the world , then turnB away sickened at
ths sight Ah ! methinks I hear the piercing wail of the poor dear wife of Eilifl , " Oh ! I thought they would have allowed me to kiss him , " Never shall I forget the thrill which went through my heart , when I r-ad this heart-breaking sentence . And then tbe love ! y inno-CBnts—mother , - why weep you?—father why grieve yoc ? But enough , I must no more . Ecglishmep arouse ye . It is for you to eay whether Ellis shall Ve . -biinished , and you be . branded for tver or wkether rampant tyrausy shall b « made t « 'bow down b , efore the irresistible will of a nii ^ . -hty jie-. p ! e , and a moving nation . If the efforts now making should fail , and the ' judges sbouid decide unfavr . ur ^ bl y , ( an d ¦ who expects any thing else , for the jad < uii . nt scat is corrupted , and turned to political purriose /;) ( -itiic-r a petition to the Commons , or a memorial to tbt . Qia : en , or both , to be . determined upon by the committee
already organiKsd on his behalf , must be piepared , adopted , and presented . I do not recomtu' -nd thia course from any faith which I bave in ' petitions or memorialsy but if proper steps be taken , I feel a pp . rsua sion somehow or other that such a demonstration may be got up in tho metropoL's , as will not only effectuate the liberation of Ellis , but also do much for the people too . Tne plan ' which I have to recommend is this .- let a small tract be printed detailing a short account of Ellis—of hia EpotltsH character—of his trialthe natnre cf tLe-evidence upon wbich he was convlcten , with a short but clear statement of his political principles . Let London be deluged with thfcao tracts one month at least before the presentation ; and , to meet the expense ; of printing and tho demonstration , let b 8 » iaiB -br tea parties he got up both in London and the potteries ; and let our richer friends for once show tbeir generosity by liberal support
It may be' asfced why the rest ef the provinces should not engage to ^ raise tbeir quota towards this benevolent object ? Because I think if proper exertions be made in iandon . and Staffordshire , sufficient fuD .-Js may be raised for the . - purpose , and in the mean time the EngJ li » h provinces and Scotland ongbt to get up similar baziaM and lea . parties for the btneflt of the " General Victim and D e fence Fund" I would respectfully suggest to the English Esecutive , and the Central Bjard of Scotland to sake up this subject immediately , to deliberate calmly upon it , and decide and advise according to the ' best of their own jn ^ m . ent . It this matter be noVtiiken up by these official" bodies , U . ' wiU never be generally attended to .
The assistance of the ladies is absol « tely necessary to ita success ; and as notiiing can be done in order , and with effect , without 6 rgani 2 ition and system , femala Association * should be formed everywhere inatanter . Coma then ^ my good CnartUt sisters and brethren , give proof that you deserve the honourable appellation of Chartist , for it is the most honourable appellative term applied - in '< British ' seciety . Just for a moment consider the agonised feelings of the neglected Chartist victim , and determine that he shall not longer want the . cocsoiatioASfypur warmest gympathifes and prompt and best assistance . ' . ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦'; T remain , Dear Sir , dec ., ' -. ' . " ' - ' ¦ ' ¦ ' - •• . '¦¦ . - . Jean A ..
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ExtRjiOP . pis'ARY BiBTU . —A servant g irl of Mr . Doduj ' of Oiterofi , Cheshire , who left her ' place a few days since , on tue plea of being " unwell , ' was delivered , on Wednesday last , of three fine boys , all of whom , iof ; ethef with the mother , are doing well .
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THE NORT HE R N S T AB ; . ; 7
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Dec. 3, 1842, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct627/page/7/
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